Even if you’re not the biggest wrestling fan in the world, chances are, you know who Nikki and Brie Bella – The Bella Twins – are. The brunette bombshells won wrestling fans when they stepped in the ring as WWE Divas, and since snagging spots on the reality television show Total Divas, they’ve become household names to the general public as well. Sure, the initial draw was probably the fact that they’re twins – something that’s fairly unusual – but they’ve since earned tons of fans worldwide thanks to their personalities. Both Brie and Nikki are larger than life and totally fun to watch on-screen.

They’ve both done very well in the ring, but these smart cookies aren’t content to limit their careers to that. After all, any professional athlete has a limited career based on sheer physical impact – the smart ones think ahead to other opportunities. They’ve both constantly got other projects on their mind and are looking to expand the Bella empire – and honestly, we have full confidence that they’ll easily be able to do that. We’re not sure how much longer Total Divas will be on the air, but whether they leave the reality television sphere forever or get their own spin-off shows, whether they retire from wrestling and start building a new business, we have no doubt that you’ll be hearing from these ladies for years to come.

So, besides the fact that they’re absolutely gorgeous, how much do you actually know about the Bella Twins? Here are 15 things about them you may not have known.

They Waited Tables When They Were Younger

Very, very few actresses or models just get discovered while they’re out getting coffee with a friend or browsing at the mall. The majority have to sit through auditions and rush through a foreign city on go-sees – it takes a lot of work to claw your way to the top. And, while they’re trying to make a name for themselves, most aspiring actresses and models still need to pay the bills. So, they do things like waitress and whip up lattes at a local cafe and work in retail. The Bella twins are no different. When they were younger, they aspired to be actresses or models, so they headed to Los Angeles and started waitressing in order to pay the bills. Luckily, one thing led to another and soon enough they were working with WWE and on their way to becoming household names.

They’re Half-Mexican, Half-Italian

The Bella twins’ heritage is a little bit tough to pin down. They have gorgeous brunette locks and aren’t super pale, but it’s not totally clear what their background is based on their appearance along. However, their last names give a bit of a hint. The duo commonly known as the Bella twins actually grew up as the Garcia-Colace twins. So, as the name makes clear, they’re actually half Mexican (from their father, Jon Garcia’s side), and half Italian (from their mother, Kathy Colace’s side). We’ve got to say, it makes a lot of sense – women from both of those cultures are notorious for being absolutely drop-dead gorgeous, so the fact that the Bella twins’ genes are a mixture of those two? Well, no wonder they’re so stunning.

Nikki Is The Older Twin

With twins, obviously, no matter how identical they look, one had to have been born first. And it’s not always the one you might first assume – sometimes, the younger twin actually ends up being the more mature, responsible one, the one you assume must have had a few minutes’ advantage over their sibling. In the Bella twins’ case, it was actually Nikki who was born approximately 16 minutes before Brie came into the world. We can’t help but wonder how that affected their relationship dynamic growing up. For example, every time Brie was trying to give Nikki advice she didn’t want to hear, did Nikki pull the ‘I’m older, I know better’ card? Or did they just call it a draw and never really mention it because, well, it’s less than half an hour – not exactly a ton of time to gather wisdom.

Nikki Loves To Write Poetry

Since both of the Bella twins are in such phenomenal shape, it can be easy to assume that they just grew up as athletes and never really bothered to dabble in the arts. It turns out, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Both Bella twins have creative passions, and for Nikki, that passion is poetry. She’s commented in an interview that “I write poetry. One day I’m going to put my book out with all my poetry.” While her career and all the time filming the reality show likely take up a lot of time, there’s no doubt that Nikki is able to carve out some alone time to put pen to paper every now and then. We’d honestly love to see the type of poetry she would come up with – perhaps one day it’ll be a reality.

Nikki Is A Real Estate Agent

Like we’ve said before, the Bella twins aren’t two dumb brunettes. They realize that a career as a professional athlete can only last so long, and even though they’re well paid, they need to have some sort of plan for the future as well. For Nikki, that plan was real estate. The gorgeous, polished babe studied for and passed her real estate exams, and though she’s still working with the WWE, she’s actually a licensed agent. She has stated before that she wants to sell enough houses to buy her love John Cena a car by the time he hits 40. Whether or not she actually makes that goal, it’s an admirable second career to embark on. Whenever she decides to hang up her wrestling boots, she can walk right into the real estate market as a licensed agent, which is pretty cool.

They Were Discovered On A Reality TV Show

In the world of wrestling, the Bella twins have been a big thing ever since the brunette bombshells first stepped into the ring. However, it’s only since they started appearing on the wrestling-centric reality show Total Divas that they began to reach an even wider audience. It’s a bit of a full circle moment, considering that a reality show was kind of their big break into the industry in general. When the twins moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the entertainment industry, they went on countless auditions, as all aspiring actresses do. Eventually, they scored a spot on a reality show called Meet My Folks, and from that opportunity ended up going to a WWE Diva casting. The rest, as they say, is history. Though the aspiring actresses didn’t really want to leave Los Angeles and relocate to Florida for WWE training, they eventually did, and it’s obviously been a great decision for both of their careers.

They Created A Company Together

The Bella twins are both extremely stylish, and they’re also smart. They realize that a career in the WWE can only last so long, so a few years back, they started looking for ways to diversify their careers. So, they put their business-savvy minds together and came up with Birdie Bee, a company that makes panties and helps donate to young women in need. I mean, given how many skimpy outfits they rock on stage, and how much spandex and lycra and stretch fabric they’ve worn over the years, it makes sense that they’d try to craft a comfortable product for other women. We’re not saying they’re going to launch the next Victoria’s Secret, but hey, if supermodel Elle Macpherson could come up with a successful lingerie line, why couldn’t the Bella twins?

They Used To Be The World Cup Twins For Budweiser

Let’s be honest, even if Brie and Nikki hadn’t have made it big with the WWE, chances are they would have been successful in the modelling sphere. The two have the curvy bodies perfect for modelling things like swimwear and lingerie, and for those audiences, two gorgeous brunettes is always better than one. Before they were gaining sponsorship deals and attention just for being themselves, they lent their physique to Budweiser to become the World Cup Twins for their advertisements. It’s tough to track down images of the Bella twins in their younger years, but let’s just say they were just as sexy as they are now. It’s no wonder that Budweiser figured two gorgeous brunettes would be a solid choice – those brews were probably flying off the shelves!

Brie Is All About Animals And The Environment

One thing that any fan of Total Divas knows is that Brie and her hubby Bryan are huge, huge environmental advocates. In fact, it’s something that twin sis Nikki has teased her about from time to time. Brie knows that her time in the spotlight gave her a voice that could actually make an impact, so she used her fame to promote awareness for animal cruelty and environmental issues. Most of her work and projects have been with her sister Nikki, but honestly, particularly now that they’re both retired from wrestling, we wouldn’t be surprised if the Danielson family decided to create some type of environmentally conscious company designed to help animals. Eco-friendly pet beds, perhaps? The two are smart enough and passionate enough about the causes they believe in that they could totally make it work.

Brie Is An Artist

In her career as a wrestler, most of the focus has been on Brie’s physical abilities and talents, because, well, that’s what wrestlers do. They need to be in peak physical condition so that they can pull off whatever crazy moves they’re instructed to pull off. However, when she’s not in the ring or training, Brie likes to get in touch with her creative side. She’s always painting and creating things in her down time, as she’s admitted in many interviews. Perhaps when her little baby is born, she’ll be finger painting up a storm, or sketching out portraits of the new addition to her little family. Or, maybe she’ll just venture out on a whole new career as a professional artist. Who knows? The world is her oyster.

They Were Athletes Growing Up

It takes a lot of training and conditioning to be able to do what the WWE Divas do, and the Bella twins are no different. Those physiques are the product of many, many hours in the gym, working hard. However, they’re no strangers to athletic pursuits. Before they ever stepped foot in a wrestling ring, they already knew what it took to perform as an athlete, because they both played soccer growing up. In their teenage years, they went in different directions, with Brie pursuing ballet and Nikki sticking with soccer. In fact, Nikki was so good that she even debated going on to a career as a professional soccer player, before a leg injury derailed her dream. Still, we can only imagine that having that athletic background helped when they showed up for training at WWE headquarters.

They Don’t Allow The Cameras Absolutely Everywhere

When you’re a cast member on a reality television show, you kind of have to deal with the fact that the world might see a lot of your personal drama. After all, great reality television is all about drama. So if there’s a fight or some kind of conflict going on, you’d better believe the cameras will be glued to you to see if they can capture something juicy. However, there are a few spots where the Bella twins draw the line, and they basically all involve family. To honour their grandfather, the twins’ family has a tradition of a ‘drummer boy dinner.’ While they’ve shared family moments on Total Divas before, that particular tradition is near and dear to their hearts, so they’ve kept it a private thing.

They’ve Both Dated Celebrities Before Their Current Partners

We’ve got to admit, it’s almost impossible to picture Brie and Nikki Bella with someone other than their current partners. After all, since the Bella twins started blowing up and becoming international superstars, they’ve had the same two devoted men by their side. Nikki has been with fellow wrestler John Cena for many years, and is constantly posting on social media about her one true love. And, Brie also managed to find the perfect partner within the world of wrestling with Daniel Bryan (or, Brian Danielson, if you’re going by his non-ring name), who she’s expecting a baby with. However, in their younger years, they dated other men - some who you might recognize. Nikki dated fellow wrestler Dolph Ziggler for a while, and the always artsy Brie was with Richie Kotzen, the former guitarist for Poison, for about five years.

Their Names Aren’t Brie And Nikki

In the world of wrestling, it’s a little bit tough to figure out who is going by a stage name and who is going by their real name. Some names are obviously meant for the ring – The Rock, anyone? – while others, such as Brie’s husband, former wrestler, Daniel Bryan, seem realistic enough to be regular names. The Bella twins adopted a bit of a hybrid approach. The duo were born Brianna Monique Garcia-Colace and Stephanie Nicole Garcia-Colace. When it came time to pick names for the ring, they decided to go by their nicknames, Brie and Nikki, and just add the ‘Bella’ as a stage surname. We have to imagine it’s a little bit bizarre having the entire world refer to you by your nicknames, but hey, if actors can go by stage names, why can’t wrestlers?

Nikki Was Previously Married

Every Total Divas fan knows that John Cena has pretty strong views on marriage. He obviously adores Nikki and the two have been together for years, so for all intents and purposes, they behave kind of like a married couple would. However, he’s been outspoken about the fact that he just never wants to get married again, probably because of how his first marriage ended. However, he isn’t the only one who’s walked down the aisle once before. At the tender age of 20, Nikki actually tied the knot with her high school sweetheart. A short few years later and the two realized they had just made an error in judgment and gotten married way too young, and separated. That doesn’t mean she never wants to rock a white dress again, though. While she’s happy with John, fans can definitely tell that if he were to ever pop the question, she would 100% say yes.

Sources: sheknows.com, azcentral.com, latina.com, eonline.com